Blinding Me
by OneSidedLoveStory
Summary: Hinata is dating Naruto, and Neji thinks she deserves better. Will Neji realise his feelings for Hinata, or will he keep lying to himself? NejiHinaNaru Rated for Language and Themes.
1. It's weird that you care

The mood was intense. The wind blew dramatically through long dark hair. Each person knew exactly what move they should make to win, but it wasn't quite that simple. Maybe if the other person didn't follow through with what the other was thinking, there was a possibility of one of the parties winning. But unless the other party decided to be completely ignorant, this was going to end soon.

Much to Neji's dismay, his cousin was thinking the exact same thing. Pale hands put the pencil down on paper, and marked an x, crossing out three in a row. "I win, Neji-nii-san!" Hinata clapped a bit and shot her hands up in the air happily! She looked at her pouting cousin and offered him a smile. "You'll p-probably win n-next time." He looked up at her and exhaled disappointedly. "I couldn't win anyways, Hinata-sama." Hinata heard him mumble something about 'It was fated to happen,' as he pushed in his chair.

The doorbell rang, causing the cousins to look up. Hinata squealed, "I'll g-get it!" As she started her run/skip combination towards the front door. Neji sighed, not even bothering to ask who it was. He knew by the way her face lit up that it was Naruto, come to whisk her away to some expensive place that, 'Only the Hokage can afford, Believe it!'. "Probably some fancy restaurant with some kind of aphrodisiac food.' The branch member grumbled under his breath all the way to the hall, decided to stand behind his cousin as she got the door and was greeted by flowers.

"T-thank you, Naruto-kun!" She gave him a tight hug , and he picked her up and swirled her around. She laughed as he kissed on the cheek, setting her down. Neji felt a pang in his heart every time he did that. 'I should get that checked.' The prodigy mused.

"So, Hinata-chan, where would like to go?" Naruto smiled the signature smile at his girlfriend, who blushed and smiled right back. "H-How about you p-pick, Naruto-kun?" Hinata let her hands go from around his neck and held his hands. "Well, I was thinking we could catch a movie, and then get some eatings. How does that sound?" Hinata was about to open her mouth to oblige, when Neji interrupted her. "What a juvenile idea. Do you try to be charming, or does it come naturally?" "Neji-nii-san!" A flustered Hinata shot him a surprised look. "Well, at least I can actually get a girlfriend, asshole." "Naruto-kun!"

Before Hinata could say anything more, the two launched into battle. "I can get a girlfriend, I just don't want a girlfriend." "You can't get a girlfriend even if you weren't gay." "That's most ridiculous thing I've ever heard! Besides, I'm not the one that had the thing for Sasuke a few years ago." "Well at least I'm not a _fucking branch member_." That's when all talking stopped and Naruto grinned that stupid grin, thinking he won. "Believe it." Hinata turned to her boyfriend. "Naruto-kun, how c-could you say such a thing!" She looked back over at her cousin sympathetically. "Neji-nii-san, I-I'm sure he didn't mean it, I-" "That's alright Hinata. It's not his fault he's an idiot." Naruto glared at the older Hyuuga. "Hey, fuck you, bastard."

Naruto reached for a Kunai, but thankfully, Hinata stepped in. "Naruto-kun, l-let's just go. I-I'm sorry t-that Neji-nii-san upset you." She glanced back over at her cousin, who was staring at her in disbelief. 'She's sorry that I upset _him_?' Neji watched as Naruto threw him a look that plainly said, 'I win.' And with that, he kissed her on the cheek. "You're right, Hinata-chan. He's not worth getting angry over." Before Hinata could say anything, Naruto put his hand around her waist, "Ready to go?" She looked back over at her cousin, who was still standing in shock. She turned to Naruto, and nodded. "Y-yes, let's go." She sent Neji a look before walking out the door, leaving him standing alone, mouth gaping open.

Neji scoffed and went to sit in the kitchen. He sat there, absentmindedly playing with a kunai that he had in his pocket. Thoughts raced through his head as he wondered why Hinata would even date such an asshole. It couldn't be because he was Hokage; she's always liked him. "What the hell are you doing?" Neji was ripped back into reality at the voice. He already knew who was talking to him, but he looked up anyways. "I'm sitting at a table, Hanabi-sama." She scoffed and shrugged, pulling open the fridge door and scanning the contents. "No, you were making all these faces. I stood there watching you for at least five minutes." Neji watched as the thirteen year old took out a carton of milk, and sat down across from him.

"So what were you thinking about?" "Nothing important." Hanabi raised an eyebrow. "You're lying." She purred in a sing-song voice. "Were you thinking about Tenten? Because if you were, then you really should be in your room, because Dad wouldn't want to walk in and see you mas-" Neji cut her off. "No, she's not the one I'm thinking about." Neji wondered why teenagers were so direct and impolite these days. Five years ago, nobody was like this. 'I guess times have changed.' "Oh! So there's a one!" Neji was snapped from Neji-world back to reality once again by the voice of his cousin. "No, Hanabi-sama. There's no _one_. I'm thinking about your older sister." A look of disgust came over the girls features. "Ehmagawd. Neji, that is gross!" "What are you talking- OH! No! Not like that. I'm thinking about why she would date the stupid blonde."

Neji looked up to see Hanabi drinking from the carton. He made a mental note not to ever drink milk from that fridge again. After brushing some loose strands of hair out of her face, Hanabi looked at her older cousin. "You should do that, your father will get angry." "Augh, it's always, 'Your father will this,' or 'Your father will that.'" She rolled her eyes, and walked over to the fridge. "Yeah, Naruto's an ass. But he's a funny ass." "But he's still an ass. How could she like him? It's weird." Hanabi closed the fridge door and put her hands on her hips. "It's weird that you care."

The teenager took a seat on the edge of the table, laying down and flopping her hands on her chest. "Anyways, what does it matter? It's her life, Neji. She can do whatever she wants with it." Hanabi looked at him before jumping off the table and walking over to the doorframe. "But it's just, she's come so far, Hanabi-sama. She's changed, she's braver. Why waste it on him?" Neji looked over to the raven haired girl. "Get over yourself. You're acting like a jealous ex-boyfriend." Hanabi turned and went headed up the stairs. "Go relieve some tension, jack off or something." A cup hit the wall behind her, making her yelp and scurry up the stairs a little faster.

A FEW THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW:

-Time-skip 5 years.

Neji:19

Hinata:18

Hanabi:13

Naruto:19 (Hokage)

Okay, now for my time to shine. So I was looking around on FF, and I realized there wasn't many stories that dove into the Hyuuga household. So, I decided I'd make one. This could be a one-shot, but I have bigger plans for this little beauty. Yes, this is going to be a love triangle. There will be multiple different pairings, and yes, I admit some of them are crack pairings, but mainly NejiHinaNaru. Please review with comments, do you hate it? Do you love it? Is it missing something? R&R! Thank you!


	2. If you love me, prove it

Hinata was happy. She had a loving boyfriend, a good family, her friends were all so supportive, and life was good. But Hinata also had to deal with the fact that her boyfriend was the Hokage, and that meant responsibility, and being stalked by photographers and paparazzi.

You couldn't just go to a movie and a show. You had to first answer all the questions the waitress has for you, and then when you finally get your meal, other citizens have some more questions and comments for you. Then, somebody might come over and ask how it feels to be the girlfriend of the most important person in the entire village. This was hard to handle for a shy girl such as Hinata.

When they finally made it to the movie, Naruto wasn't really interested in the big moving pictures. He was focused on the girl beside him, looking perfectly innocent. His eyes slowly trailed down from her flawless face to her bust. 'It's a shame she covers up so much. She really should show them off.' Hinata looked over at her boyfriend, and seeing that he was eyeing her she shifted uncomfortably. He looked up. "Sorry Hinata-chan. I was just thinking." "O-okay, Naruto-kun. She smiled and cuddled closer to him, leaning on her shoulder.

Naruto wrapped his arm around his girlfriend's shoulder. She smelled of lavender and cinnamon, and he stopped himself from fantasizing. He just couldn't take it anymore. She was eighteen now, and he had waited two whole months now. He leaned over to her ear and whispered quietly. "Want to go back to my place after this, Hinata-chan?" She turned to him smiling and nodded. He kissed on the cheek, and she blushed and returned the gesture before turning back towards the screen. Naruto rested against the back of his chair. All of a sudden, he couldn't wait for the movie to end.

Back at the Hyuuga Household, Neji was developing a nervous tick watching the clock. Hinata had called him to ask him to tell Hiashi that she caught the later movie, due to all of the paparazzi. Neji would have, but Hiashi had just left on a mission. So Neji stayed up watching the clock, waiting to hear the sounds of the door squeaking open quietly. 'Maybe, maybe something bad happened. I'm supposed to protect her! Hiashi's going to kill me. Naruto should be protecting her anyways, that stupid blonde.' "You're doing it again."

Neji imagined taking a piece of tape and wrapping it around his younger cousin's head. "Hanabi-sama, it's past your bedtime. Your father will have my head if-" "What so Hinata gets to stay out! That's not fair!" The younger girl stamped her foot on the carpet. Neji turned to her calmly. "Hinata is eighteen. She can do whoever she wants." Hanabi stood motionless for a minute. "What?" Neji remembered when the little girl used to hold her breath until she got what she wanted.

"You said 'She can do _whoever_ she wants'. Whoever." Neji sucked in his breath. 'Had I really said that?' Neji tried to stop unwanted images from crawling into his subconscious. "I meant whatever, whatever she wants." Hanabi still stood there, until she got a devious look on her face. "I'm telling Father!" She turned on the spot and started to sprint for the stairs. "No!" Neji followed suite, knowing that Hiashi would honestly kill him for letting anything like that happen on his watch.

He was at the top of the stairs when he heard the doorbell ring. "It's Hinata, back from her sexcapades!" Hanabi shouted from her room. Neji decided to kill her and make it look like an accident. He turned calmly, regaining his composure before going to answer the door. He was about to start descending the stairs as a teenager sat on the railing, sliding down and reaching the door before him. Neji ran and the two tried to push each other out of the way. Hanabi ducked under his arm, and opened the latch.

Back at Naruto's apartment, after Naruto took her coat, Hinata made herself comfortable on the big red couch. She found it cute that he kept his old apartment even though he could have the Hokage mansion. Naruto came out from the hallway and sat next to her, kissing her on the cheek. She blushed and kissed him back. 'I wonder what we're going to do, maybe watch some TV like last time I was over?' Hinata mused to herself as she got ready to cuddle into her boyfriend's arms. She waited for him to reach over to get the remote control, but he didn't instead, he placed his hands on her shoulders, and gently pushed her down unto the couch.

Hinata's pure eyes opened wide in surprise at Naruto's actions. "N-Naruto-kun. W-what are you d-doing-" He stopped her talk by kissing her on the lips. Her mind raced. 'What is Naruto thinking? Does he want to," Naruto placed his knees beside her waist and got a little rougher with his kissing. She was too shocked to move. "N-no…" Naruto looked down at her, smiling. "What's wrong Hinata?" Hinata noted that his voice got deeper, sultry even. "W-what are you d-doing?" Naruto paused for a moment. "I'm proving our love, Hinata." "W-What do you m-mean?"

Naruto isn't a mean person. But, it just so happens that Naruto needed a lay. He had an idea. He knew that Hinata wanted to be with him. She would do anything to be with him. "Oh, no. Hinata, don't you trust me?" He watched with inner pleasure as her features were littered with worry. "I-I do! N-Naruto-kun, I-I trust y-you." Her hands met on her chest, and he could tell she was fighting with herself. He smiled. "Good." The Kyuubi vessel moved his hands down to his girlfriend's button up shirt. She winced under his touch, as he began to remove her clothing.

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	3. How to ruin a relationship

The door swung open abruptly, much to the visitor's confusion, to show Neji and Hanabi in great dishevelment. Hair was messed, clothes were tugged and askew, and they were both flustered. "Oh. It's just Spandex Man." Hanabi was clearly not amused as she turned and headed up the stairs, slamming her door behind her. Neji fixed his hair and brushed his clothes off as he stood up to face his baffled guest. "Lee. Come in." Neji decided it would be better if he just pretended that nothing just happened.

Lee walked in, surveying his surroundings, even though he had been here a few times. He wiped his feet to 'not contaminate the beautiful palace Neji called home with dirt'. "So, Neji-kun, what are you doing on this night?" Neji rolled his eyes at his guest. "I'm taking care of the cousins, Lee. What do you want?" "Well, I just wanted to see if you were alright, seeing as you skipped training." Neji wanted to smack his hand to his forehead. How could he have forgotten about training? He must have been too concentrated on the many games of Tic Tack Toe he had earlier. But he would never admit it. "Sorry about that, Lee. I was busy with Hinata-sama." Lee nodded. "That's alright. Sakura-chan came by while I was training, and I think she gave me a look!" If Neji was a better person, he would've patted his friend on the shoulder. He knew that Sakura would never go out with Lee, mainly because she was currently dating Sasuke.

"Good luck with that, Lee." Lee smiled, almost blinding Neji with the sparkle. "I was thinking that I could perhaps ask Hinata-chan if she could put a good word in for me. Sakura-chan is her friend." Neji knew that to his youthful companion, this plan was pure genius. "You could ask her, but I'm not going to." "Speaking of Hinata-chan, I saw her leaving the theater. I wonder what movie she saw. I saw a good one with Tenten the other week-"Neji perked up, finally noticing the time. 'Maybe she stopped for something on the way home.' Neji wondered why his cousin wasn't home yet. "When did you see her leave, Lee?" "-and then she fell in the puddle!" Lee laughed, remembering the funny movie.

"Lee!" "Oh. Sorry, Neji. Around an hour and a half ago. Maybe two. But you should really go to see this movie!"' Two hours ago? She said she'd be right home!' Neji glanced over to the phone. 'She hasn't called either. I should go ask Naruto if he knows where she is.' "Lee. I'm sorry. I must go to find my cousin." "Oh, yes, Neji! I think you should start at Naruto's, because I think they are dating!" Lee opened his eyes to hear a click at the door. He looked around to see a teenager standing on the stairs. "Hello, youthful teenager! How is your springtime of life going?" Lee smiled at Hanabi who scoffed ad crossed her arms. "Get out of my house."

Hinata didn't know what happened. One moment she was content and safe in her boyfriend's arms, sitting on the couch. Then in the next moment, all that perfection, all that happiness fell to crap. After an awkward shuffle into the room at the end of the hall, Hinata found herself pressed on Naruto's bed. The blond was trailing kisses down her neck, and playing with her shirt. She was blushing furiously, embarrassed and alarmed at her boyfriend's rough touches. Hinata didn't like this feeling, or how he was fondling her body, but she was afraid that Naruto would break up with her if she didn't allow him this.

She made a stifled gasp as Naruto started pulling down the zipper. Hinata didn't know why, but wanted to cry and tell him to stop. This just didn't feel right. This just didn't seem like Naruto. Maybe she didn't even know the real Naruto! This thought alone was enough to make a tear slide down her cheek. 'What is he breaks up with me after this? What if he doesn't love me anymore? What if he,' What if's crowded the space in her mind. She looked down to her boyfriend who was playing with her bra. This time she didn't hold back and let out a sob. Naruto didn't even look up when there was a knock at the door.

Neji ran as quickly as he could to the Hokage's apartment. 'Why do I even care so much? She's probably fine, slow down.' Neji's body didn't listen to him. He just kept heading to the building, and didn't even bother ringing the bell. He opened the door and ran up the stairs. When he got to the apartment, he knocked. He waited for a few minutes before knocking again. Neji swore at himself for getting so melodramatic. She's fine; she can take care of herself. Neji shuffled his feet around before knocking again. This time he waited ten minutes. He stopped looking at his feet when he heard a quiet Hinata-like sob coming from inside. "Fuck that." He pushed the door open, immediately activating his Byakugan.

Naruto stopped what he was doing and yelled. 'Hey, what the hell are you doing!" He had almost gotten his girlfriend's panties off when a familiar face entered the room. "Neji, get the fuck out!" "Neji-nii-san," Hinata was curled up on the bed, face red from crying. Neji's face hardened. "Get away from my cousin you son of a bitch." "Aw, Neji's upset." Naruto made a pouting face and laughed. "I said move!" Neji threw his kunai directly at Naruto's throat. Naruto moved and it grazed his shoulder. Neji punched him while he wasn't looking, and Naruto gave him a scowl. Hinata was still crying on the bed when Neji threw his coat around her and picked her up. "Come on, Hinata, we're going home." Naruto shouted obscenities as Neji left the apartment with his cousin his arms, softly sleeping.

Sorry this took so long. I've been busy with school work, but I'm going to update more often now that I'm getting some free time. Thank you to all of the wonderful people that reviewed. You can stop break dancing now.

Please R&R again to tell me I should continue!


	4. Midnight Recollections

Neji paced worriedly back and forth in the hall outside of his cousin's rooms. Hanabi had finally fallen asleep, and he had made Hinata comfortable in her own bed, not waking her as he silently tiptoed out the door. Neji knew this was going to be a long, sleepless night, followed by something very bad. And when Neji was worried, he talked to Tenten.

"Neji, I think you should just let it cool down. I mean, if she doesn't want to talk about, she probably will one day. It's not your fault." "But I left her alone with him! I didn't check the time and he almost," A quiet sigh was heard on the other side of the phone. "Neji-kun, do you want me to come over and talk to you about this?"A pause. "Yes. But don't ring the door bell, I'll be watching for you." A click as the other end of the phone call was stopped, and Tenten rubbed her eyes, and forced herself to swing her legs over the side of the bed.

It will always freak Tenten out when she goes up to the Hyuuga household, and the door swings open in her face. She jumped a little, but otherwise ignored it as Neji ushered her inside. He walked over to the couch and sat down, putting his head in his hands. Tenten walked over and sat beside him. "Neji, like I said before, it's not your fault." The Hyuuga pushed a lock of brown hair out of his face. "I couldn't do anything. And he almost.." He rested against the back of the couch. Tenten had never seen him this upset. " Neji, let it cool down. Go about things as normal, be considerate, don't mention Naruto." "I'm going to kill him next time I see that bastard." "Neji, don't be rash. You'll be put in prison if you lay a hand on him. He is the Hokage, you know." Neji cursed under his breath. "But I could win. I've been training extra hard with Lee, I've always been able to win…"

Tenten put her hand on his. "Listen to me. Hinata needs time to heal herself. Don't try to talk to her about it, just pretend it never happened. After a week, I'll have a talk with her, chances are she'll probably open up to me rather than you." "But I'm her cousin." "But I'm her friend." "But I'm her cousin!" "But I'm a girl!" Neji looked away from his friend. She had a point there. They sat in silence for a bit. "What do I do now?" "Well, getting a bit of sleep would help. You look like crap." Tenten smiled and Neji grunted. The weapons master slowly turned and walked over to the door. "Well, I guess I'll be going now." Neji walked over to her, grabbing her arm."No, wait. Can I, um, make you some coffee?" "I would love some coffee."

A few hours later, the sunrise was just beginning to show as the two friends reminisced of their old days in a team. They talked quietly and laughed at all the funny things that used to happen regularly. Tenten was happy Neji wasn't thinking about his cousin, and that she could take his mind off of it. Glancing over at the clock, Tenten realized she had been over for three hours now. She hated to leave, but, "Neji, I have to go. I didn't realize how late it was. Try to get some sleep yourself, okay?" "I guess." The two friends hugged and Neji walked his guest to the door, watching her walk away for a few minutes.

Neji blinked slowly, sitting himself up wherever he was. Turns out, he had fallen asleep on the couch. He looked around to see Hanabi sitting next to him with a bowl of cereal and watching cartoons. "You're too old to do that, you know. You should be training." The younger Hyuuga scowled, never turning away from the screen. "It's Saturday, I can do whatever I want." Neji sighed and stood up. "Clean up after yourself." She nodded and he dragged himself upstairs, stopping at Hinata's room. He felt his heart skip a beat when he thought about last night. "Maybe I'll check on her." Her whispered quietly to himself before propping the door open just a little.

Hinata was sitting upright on the side of her bed, wearing her nightgown and comfy bunny slippers. She looked at the door quickly when she heard it open. She settled down when she saw who was opening it. "Neji-nii-san…" Neji stepped in her room. "I'm sorry if I woke you, Hinata-sama." She shook her head and patted beside her, indicating that Neji could sit. He did, and they sat in silence for a while, until Neji broke it. "Are you alright, Hinata-sama?" She stiffened and nodded slightly. "T-Thanks to you." Neji turned to her, only to catch her looking at him too. "It's my job, I have to protect you." "Oh." And then they fell back into silence. "I would've done it even it wasn't my job, though."

This time it was Hinata's turn to look over at her older cousin. She smiled and rested her head on Neji's shoulder. Neji noticed how nice she smelled; like violets. They stayed like this for a while, Hinata leaning on his shoulder, and Neji's arm wrapped around her. "W-What do I do now, Neji-nii-san?" Neji looked over at her. "Don' talk to him." Her face changed from happy to upset at the very mention. "D-Don't talk to N-Naruto?" Neji was glad that she had dropped the –kun. "No, don't talk to him. Hinata, he.." He looked at his cousin, choosing his words carefully so as to not upset her more than needed. "Naruto need some time to, uh, think."

Neji inwardly cursed at himself for not being very good at giving advice, or showing compassion. 'I should work on that.' "To think about what, Neji-nii-san?" "Well, what I meant was, you need to stay away from him for a while." Hinata's eyes became watery, causing Neji's fears to come true when a tear slid down her cheek. "W-Why not?" 'Because he's a pervert, an idiot, he doesn't love you, he doesn't deserve you, he only loves you for your body, and he would use you and then dump you!' Neji couldn't say anything he was thinking because chances were, she would never talk to him ever again. So instead, he just pulled her into a tight hug, which she returned. Leaning in close to her, he whispered, 'You deserve better.' Hinata didn't reply, but

Neji didn't want to leave this place, how comfortable and right this felt, but he would have to, because in the next moment, a voice rang around d the room. "Neji, what are you doing to my daughter!" The two stiffened and looked at the man in the doorway. Hanabi stepped in behind him. "Oh my god, they're in trouble, aren't they?"

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yes, so this is the fourth intallment of the triology. R&R and I'll update faster. BTW. I'm now taking pairing suggestions, GO. 


	5. Stop drinking forom the carton

The Hyuuga family room was deathly quiet, as Hinata slowly sat on the edge of the couch, next to her father. They were both facing Neji, as Hiashi was angry at how close they had been, and wouldn't let her sit near him. Neji sat with dignity, even as he bowed and started his explanation. "Hiashi-san, you need not worry. I was only comforting Hinata in your absence. You told me to take care of her." Hiashi raised an eyebrow, turning to his daughter. "Does your cousin speak the truth?" Hiashi usually wouldn't go to extreme measures such as this; but he remembered when he was Neji's age, and he knew that Hinata was a pretty girl of the same age and mentality. "Yes, Father." The Hyuuga girl nodded to emphasize her point.

"Well, then, why would you need comforting, Hinata-chan?" She straightened up and her smile wavered. Neji noticed and wished he had taught her to control her facial expressions. "I-um, a-ano, I-I, N-Nar-" "Naruto had Hokage business to attend to, and they were supposed to meet at the theater, Hiashi-san." The two main house Hyuugas turned to Neji. He looked over to Hinata, seeing if she would understand and go along. They could both tell Hiashi wasn't buying it.

"H-He was suppsed t-to meet me, b-but he didn't show, Father." Hinata blinked innocently, poking her fingers together. From the hallway Hanabi scoffed, "Yeah right." Hiashi addressed her and told her to go upstairs. Hinata and Neji sat by quietly as the two bickered about why Hanabi should 'be able to have a life, dad.' And why Hanabi's 'too young to be out unaccompanied.' And how she should be training instead of being rude and nosy. Hanabi, of course, lost the argument and stomped up the stairs loudly. After the comical relief was over, Hiashi turned back to the two young adults, who stiffened. "Are you sure this was the case, Hinata?" "Y-yes." She said, once again putting on an innocent face.

Hiashi watched her for a second, before patting her on the shoulder. He then lingered and eyed Neji slowly, but he finally got up and walked into the kitchen. Neji sighed in relief. "You kn-know Neji-nii-san, I n-never lied to Father b-before." Hinata said quietly. Neji chuckled and "Well, it's for your own good. Wasn't even a big lie. Don't beat yourself up." "Thank you, N-Neji-nii-san." He walked over to her and put his hands on his hips. "No problem. Now, I'm going to go talk to the blonde bastard about that movie last night, hm? Be good." He ruffled his cousin's hair, and went to put on his coat.

On his way out, Hanabi stepped in front of the door. "Liar. There are only Horror movies playing right now. Hinata would never see a horror movie." Neji looked down at the girl, noticing she had the carton of milk in her hand, yet again. "I quite think you're wrong. You see, I have pictures of you in your Elmo pajamas, kissing a picture of Konohamaru. I also have access to the internet." The girl's horrified face looked up at him. "You wouldn't." "Want to find out?" She slowly stood aside giving her older cousin a nasty look. "I hate you, Neji." He laughed a bit. "You shouldn't drink form the carton." He closed the door.

Made this chapter longer, I realized there wasn't much substance in it. Enjoy.


	6. The phone call

Hanabi frowned at the door where her cousin was a moment ago. 'Stupid Neji. Him and his dumb old camera. I can drink from the carton whenever I want." She took a swig from the milk box in her hand with vigilance, as if to make a point. "You can't stop me from doing what I want. Lousy, good for nothing, blackmailing cousin." She put one hand on her hips and stomped past Hinata who was watching her sister talk to herself and hoping it was just a phase.

Slowly, after deciding that her sister wasn't crazy Hinata picked herself up from the couch and walked up the stairs. Reaching her room, she closed the door with a small click before sitting on her bed. Usually, when she had nothing to do, she would give Naruto a call and he'd whisper sweet nothings into the phone, if he wasn't away on business. Hinata stopped herself dialing Naruto's number, but she needed to talk to someone. 'Hello?' "Hello Sakura-chan, it's Hinata speaking."

Neji cursed at the ground, kicking a rock. He decided that the walk was too long from the Hyuuga estate to Naruto's apartment, and he didn't like having so much time to himself to think. When Neji was alone, unfamiliar thoughts that he would usually block out flooded his mind. 'How could anyone do such a thing to Hinata? She's so kind, and helpful, and cute, and the way her hair smells-' Neji shook his head and tried to divert his mind to something other then Hinata, though failing in his attempts.

As the Hokage's door opened, Naruto's expression became bitter to see it was Neji. "Fuck, not you again. I was hoping it'd be Hinata who came knocking on my door." Neji pushed the blonde over, Naruto smirking and letting it happen. "Well, look's like I'm pretty irresistible to any Hyuuga, huh?" Neji pulled out a kunai. "You two were at a movie. She never came home to your apartment." The Hokage laughed, and rolled over and back unto his feet. "You serious, retard? You'd think I want to ruin my reputation over a little thing like that?" Neji clenched his fist. "Your _reputation_? You're worried about your reputation! It's not a little thing, it's rape!"

Naruto shoved a hand through his light locks, sighing. "Okay, Neji, I hate to break It to you, but she wanted it. She practically begged me." "How can you say such a thing! I bet you she never even thought of it before you introduced it!" Neji was filled to the bursting point with anger, "Okay, you don't know her very well. In the movie, she was whispering about it in my ear. She couldn't wait to get back here." The Hyuuga couldn't take it anymore. "Hinata isn't like that!" "She wanted it, Neji!" "She was_ crying_!"

Naruto scoffed and leaned on the wall. "Well, even if what you say if true, who do you think the public will believe? Their Hokage, or some low-life branch member?" "She trusts you! Why can't you see how fragile her feelings are? She _loves_ you, doesn't that mean anything?" Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Of course it does, she's my girlfriend. Now, I know your 'job'," he made air quotes, "is to protect her, but I'd watch what I say, man. It sounds like you're in love with her." Neji's eyes widened a bit, but he didn't let himself process the words. "Don't say anything, and watch your back, Naruto. If you ever try anything again, you won't live to regret it." Neji put away his kunai, and walked out the door, slamming it on his way out.

Neji finally got home after a long session of dragging his feet and trying to distract himself from what Naruto had said. The second he was in the door, Hanabi was there waiting for him. "Dad said order food." "Where is he gone to?" "Some important mission." Hanabi rolled her eyes. Neji seriously thought about talking to Hiashi, he was almost never home, and Neji had to take care of his cousins. "Well?"Neji caught the phone that Hanabi threw at him. "By the way, Konohamaru is over." Neji hung his coat up on a hanger. "What? What are you two do-" "Hello, Ichiraku Ramen, how may I help you?" Hanabi smirked and rushed upstairs before Neji could follow along.

After placing an order and getting the two teenagers to hang out in the family room instead of Hanabi's room, Neji went to check on Hinata. He knocked softly "Hinata, may I come in?" He heard a little sniffling before a quiet reply. The branch member entered to see his cousin trying to wipe tears from her eyes. "Hinata-sama, what's wrong?" "I-I..S-Sakura and…N-Naruto..a-and," Neji's protective mode quickly overcame him, sitting next to her with a caring look. "What's wrong? I talked to Naruto, it's all okay now."

Hinata shook her head, looking into her cousin's identical eyes. "I-I called Sakura, and then w-we talked for a w-while, and I-I was going to s-se H-Hanabi b-but t-the phone and," she paused, trying to stop herself from breaking down. "Then what? What about Naruto?" Neji felt bad about pressing his little cousin, but he couldn't help if he didn't know the problem, and not being able to help made him feel useless. "D-dumped me."

Read and Review please. J


	7. Somebody's everything

The female Hyuuga girl couldn't hold back her tears, and hugged her older cousin for comfort. Neji wrapped his arms around her instinctively, and held her tight while she cried. After a few minutes of thinking nothing but ways to murder the blonde, he noticed Hinata stopped crying a bit. "He's a bastard to do this to you. You deserve much, much better Hinata." The eighteen year old fell apart like a child in his arms. He was her first boyfriend, he was her inspiration, he was her everything. Neji felt so helpless. She looked at him softy, wiping a tear from her cheek. "I-I d-don't want b-better, I-I w-wanted h-him! I-I've a-always liked him, y-you kn-know that." The look she had on her face was pure torture, and Neji wished he could take all the bad feeling she was happen and feel them for her. "I l-lived for him, Neji-nii-san, I-I love him! Now I'm n-nothing a-at all. I-I could die and n-nobody would care!" She sobbed and held unto her older cousin.

Neji's brain was reeling. 'He's not good enough! I'd do everything for you! I'd die in your place! I'd die with you! I'd care! ' And suddenly for Neji, time stopped. There, in the middle of the pink room, on the corner of a girl's bed, with the girl's smell of lavender wafting through his senses, he realized what he'd been denying. 'I've fallen in love with my cousin.' He looked down at the pale girl clutching to him in a new light. She was perfect in every way. The way she laughed, the way she cared, the way she came to him for help, the way she didn't care if he was a bastard or cold, the way she saw through all that, and he loved her. "Is th-there something wr-wrong?" Hinata quietly asked.

He held her tighter then he ever had before. "Hinata, you're not nothing. You're a beautiful, smart, caring girl. You're every good quality I could imagine." He let her go, slowly, and tilted her chin up so they could meet eyes. "Hinata, you're somebody's everything." Neji watched as she closed her eyes and gave him a hug. "Thank you Neji-nii-san. You really think so?" Neji smirked as he got up off the bed, cursing the sudden distance from her. "Better. I know so." She smiled, and Neji's problems went away. He offered her a tissue, and slowly slipped out the door.

The oldest Hyuuga walked at a very fast pace down the hall to his room, avoiding the servants and pushing past Hanabi, who stuck her tongue out. When he finally got to his destination, he closed the door, slid down the wall, and just sat there. Not thinking. And he stayed like this for longer then he can remember. It was almost dark out when he looked up, and he only had one thing on his mind. He wondered how it got this way. He hated her not long ago, hated the main branch, and now he couldn't remember why.

His father had died out of his own will, it was his choice. If anyone was to be blamed for his death, it was Hizashi himself. And yet, Neji didn't accept or acknowledge this until now. All this time, all this hate, all this hurt; it was for nothing. And it was distressing how, despite all the barriers, beliefs and everything he'd come to establish, even though he lived by set rules he'd created for himself, everything Neji had known was being crushed. By a silly little emotion. It wasn't even a very long word. It was four letters. It was small, and it was just that; a word. Love. But four, seemingly harmless letters broke down thousands of set notions and picked apart certainty. And even being the genius he was, Neji didn't understand it.

Neji was woken by a loud voice much too early in the morning. "Neji-kun! Hello! How are you today? Your uncle informed me that you were in your room, and gave me permission to come see you!" Neji half-opened his pallid eyes to a bright green blur, slowly coming in and out of focus. Blinking, Neji instinctively felt a rush of anger. "What do you want, Lee?" "You are awake! Good! Shall we proceed to meet Tenten?" "What are you talking about?' Neji checked the time; almost afternoon. He usually didn't wake this late. "Right. Go wait downstairs while I get dressed." Kohona's green beast gave him a thumbs up. "Yosh! I shall be waiting with vigor!" And with that, he ran to wait. _With vigor_. Quite opposite of his friend, Neji lethargically pulled himself out of bed. And threw on some clothes. And brushed his hair exactly fifty times. And walked downstairs.

On his way to where his dynamic friend waited, Neji was caught off-guard by a light tap on his shoulder. "Neji-nii-san?" A shiver ran up his arm and down his back. All the feelings from the night before exploded in his heart, and he showed not a sign of it. "Hinata-sama." He nodded in acknowledgement. "I, um, I just w-wanted to say thank you. F-for last night." Their eyes met, and although Neji has always thought their eyes were exactly the same, he now noticed how different they were. He looked into her eyes, and saw sincere emotion. She was truly grateful for his help. And his eyes stayed vacant, unfeeling. "You're welcome." "It really m-means a lot to me." He nodded again. "I know."

"I-I'm really glad we're talking. I used to be terribly frightened of you." Neji flinched slightly. Was he that cruel? He took the comment and tucked it into another part of his mind, to recall later. "I know." There was a moment of uncomfortable silence before he turned to walk away. Then, spontaneously and completely against his will, he turned around to face his cousin, and pulled her into his arms. "If you ever need me, I'm there." He pulled back, and it was Hinata's turn to nod, bemused and clearly not expecting that. "T-thank you." And with that, he bounded down the stairs.

When Neji and his bouncy friend Lee finally saw Tenten in the distance, she was talking to a man with bright blonde hair and even brighter orange clothes. Neji was immediately angry at the fact that such an asshole had the nerve to walk around, talking to people like nothing was wrong, and like he hadn't just broken Hinata's heart into a thousand pieces. And even worse, he was chatting up one of his best friends.

As they came closer to the talking pair, Naruto's loud voice was heard first. "So then, I guess I'll give you a call, huh babe?" Tenten gave him a weird look. "Babe? I never gave you my number." The Hokage winked and began to stroll away. "I'm the Hokage; I have everyone's number." With that he was gone in a flash. Tenten let out an angry sigh and turned to meet her ex-team members. "Hey guys, what took so long?" "Why was that idiot flirting with you?" Neji asked right away, surprising Tenten a little. Neji never talked first unless it had to do with a mission. "Hey, nice to see you, Neji. I'm good, thanks for asking." Lee laughed but promptly stopped when the Hyuuga gave him a stern look. "Okay, geez. I dunno, I was just standing here and he came over and started hitting on me. Why?" Kohona's green beast leaned over to whisper in the branch member's ear. "Are you jealous, Neji-kun?" Neji dropped all emotion, if there was any to start. "No." Lee laughed; he clearly didn't believe him.

'If he only knew.' Thought Neji.

Ah! I didn't update in forevs! So I wrote a longer chapter. I'm going to be updating more often now, since Summer is coming. Yay!

Lots happened in this chapter, I found I went out of my style a little around paragraph five, more descriptive. Hopefully it wasn't too bad. I particularily like it.

I was sad this chapter, it was missing the Hanabi factor. Don't worry, next chapter, Hanabi AHOY!

Read and review please. J


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